Plant diseases pose a serious threat to global food security, especially in developing countries, where millions of people depend on consuming what they harvest.
In sub-Saharan Africa, one plant disease in particular – maize lethal necrosis – is ravaging one of the region's preferred crops for food, feed and income. But understanding its biology in order to manage the disease is difficult because the disease arises from two viruses interacting – which is where mathematics comes into play.
Plant diseases pose a serious threat to global food security, especially in developing countries, where millions of people depend on consuming what they harvest.
In sub-Saharan Africa, one plant disease in particular – maize lethal necrosis – is ravaging one of the region's preferred crops for food, feed and income. But understanding its biology in order to manage the disease is difficult because the disease arises from two viruses interacting – which is where mathematics comes into play.
A team of researchers at the National Institute for Mathematical and Biological Synthesis has used mathematical modeling to better understand the dynamics of the disease and how to manage it. Their research results, published this month in a study in the journal Phytopathology, could not only help improve our understanding of maize lethal necrosis but could also help inform the management and control of other destructive plant diseases caused by combinations of pathogens.
The paper is available open access at http://apsjournals.apsnet.org/doi/abs/10.1094/PHYTO-03-17-0080-FI
The study focuses on maize lethal necrosis disease in Kenya where crop losses are particularly high. Infected corn plants die prematurely or are frequently barren, drastically reducing the yield. Most of the nation's maize supply comes from small to medium-size farms, which are less able to withstand threats to their food production than large resource-rich farms.
Continue reading at National Institute for Mathematical and Biological Synthesis (NIMBioS)
Image: Maize lethal necrosis and other plant viruses pose a serious threat to global food security. (Credits: NIMBioS)
